Do you think the Irish Football association (NI) have any right to complain?

http://www.rte.ie/sport/soccer/2010/0301鈥?/a>



The IFA up north have started to complain about Northern born players opting to play for the Republic ahead of Northern Ireland. They say it puts them at a disadvantage but who are they to dictate what nationality a person sees themselves as and what choice they make?

Current rules say that anyone born on the Island of Ireland can play for the Republic , because if someone up north considers themselves 100% Irish then they probably would not feel comfortable playing for a British entity , so have the IFA a right to dictate to players who they should play for or should the players allowed to do what they want?



With this complaint do you think they have a leg to stand on?



I don't want to get too political but isn't this case they're putting stamp all over a particular agreement made in the Good Friday Agreement about national identity?Do you think the Irish Football association (NI) have any right to complain?
I'm Welsh and I'm quite annoyed that players like Michael Owen and Owen Hargreaves choose to play for the enemy.



But there's nothing we can do about it. It's their choice who they play for, likewise it was Ryan Giggs' choice to play for the land of his fathers instead of England.



If they forced somebody like Darron Gibson to play for the North because he was born there, there's no guarantee he'd play for them, because it's quite clear he wants to represent an Irish team, rather than one that shamelessly sings GSTQ before matches.



The cultural and political history of the island of Ireland makes it impossible to culturally confine people to the side of the border in which they were born.
Don't care as i am scottish and this is a scottish football section,I am only interested in players who want to play for scotland.Do you think the Irish Football association (NI) have any right to complain?
see above answer
I don't know ask Adian McGeady hes IrishDo you think the Irish Football association (NI) have any right to complain?
Not wanting to get into the politics of it all, but lets put this on a UK perpective.



If my grandad was English or Welsh id be able to play for England or Wales.



The same should apply for NI and Ireland - there should be a family link there. Thats just my opinion anyway.
its a joke!! now i dont have a problem if some player was born and raised in northern ireland but has family who was born in the republic, because thats the rules for everyone, if you have family member born in another country you can play for them...



But when they have no link to that country why should they be allowed! playing for us through all youth teams then go and play for republic in senior level! its a joke, IFA have a right to complain, the money they are spending in grassroots programs to develop these players then the republic steal them!, we are a very small country we cant afford these players to leave...



I dont mind marc wilson leaving us for republic hes awful, but gibson is a big loss!